Japanese shrew mole
Urotrichus talpoides
Urotrichus talpoides is a mammal of the family of moles ( Talpidae ) and the only way to so monotypic genus Urotrichus. The distribution area is located in Japan on the islands of Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu, Dogo and North Tsushima.
Features
The species is very similar to its relatives Dymecodon pilirostris who has a rather shrew -like appearance. Urotrichus talpoides is only slightly larger, has a slightly less dense fur, a thick snout, wider front feet, a club-shaped, shorter but thicker tail, which reaches about one-third of the head-body length and covered with longer hair (about 6 to 9 mm in the middle and 10 to 20 mm at the tip of the tail ). The skull is stronger than Dymecodon pilirostris, the muzzle is broad and short. The first incisor in the upper jaw is very large and sharply pointed, the second is only half as long as the first. The upper canines are very small, the single-pointed upper premolars are getting smaller from the first to third. The tips of the lower incisors are bent backwards.
The fur color varies from almost black in some forms from northern distribution areas up to maroon in southern deposits. The winter coat is darker than the summer coat. Urotrichus talpoides reach a weight from 14.5 to 25.5 g, with a head-body length of 8.9 to 10.4 cm and a tail length of 2.7 to 3.7 cm. The dental formula is 2-1-4-3/1-1-3-3 = 36 Mainly because of the different dental formula - Urotrichus talpoides has a pair of teeth in the lower jaw less - were Dymecodon pilirostris and Urotrichus talpoides different genera assigned.
Way of life
Urotrichus talpoides puts his gear systems just below the surface to, but goes occasionally to the surface and was observed even climbing on low bushes. He comes in forests and grasslands outside the mountains before ( Dymecodon pilirostris inhabited higher elevations ) and feeds mainly on insects, worms and centipedes. The breeding season extends from March to May Two to four young are born per litter.
System
Traditionally, the following sub- types can be distinguished:
- Urotrichus talpoides adversus Thomas, 1908
- Urotrichus talpoides centralis Thomas, 1908
- Urotrichus talpoides hondoensis Thomas, 1918
- Urotrichus talpoides minutus Tokuda, 1932
- Urotrichus talpoides talpoides Temminck, 1841
Using a pericentric inversion, a reversal of a section in a chromosome, two forms can be distinguished, their distribution pattern are separated by the rivers Kurobe and Fuji in Zentralhonshu.